


Thunder and Iron

by Vanilla98



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: A bit of time traveling, AIM - Freeform, Age Regression/De-Aging, Angst, Daddy Issues, Established Steve Rogers/Tony Stark, Fluff, He is really worthy, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Hurt/Comfort, Little Tony is really cute, M/M, Mjolnir - Freeform, Protective Avengers, Protective Steve Rogers, The Avengers love him, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony Stark can wield Mjolnir, Tony-centric, and he loves them back, damage control
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-19
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2019-02-04 06:06:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12764715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vanilla98/pseuds/Vanilla98
Summary: Mjolnir had crash landed right beside the four-year-old Tony Stark. He immediately reached out for the handle, because he had nothing to defend himself with. More AIM scientists jumped out from the vents above. They were suddenly everywhere.“Thanks Myuh-nee,” Tony whispered.He could hear the Avengers shouting his name and running up the stairs.He grabbed Mjolnir's handle, and whatever happened next to the AIM scientists, was worthy enough to be included in history....Or, this is the story of Tony Stark de-ageing into his 4-year-old self, thanks to AIM, having the ability to lift Mjolnir.





	1. AIM aka Assholes In Motion

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ashreads](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ashreads/gifts).



> Hello everyone!  
> I have been working on this story for a long time and I finally could upload it. Finally.  
> I think one day I was looking up at the night skies when this crazy idea popped up in my head. And that was how this fic was born! :)  
> I hope all of you enjoy this story!!!  
> Happy reading! :)
> 
> *This fic takes place somewhere after the events of Iron Man 3 and before the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Thor: The Dark World.*
> 
> I dedicate this story to my three best friends (only one of them has an account) who have been there for me for a very long time. I love you three!

It was another day and the Avengers had just fought another battle. This time, it was with a few scientists from the Advanced Idea Mechanics, or _Assholes in Motion_ , as Tony had so fondly put it.

Speaking of which, the genius was really tired. He had been up all night upgrading his own suit, and also tweaking a few things on Black Widow’s bites. He only managed to fall asleep at 4am, and was woken up by the love of his life, Steve Rogers, at 7am.

Compulsory training exercise was the reason he gave as he placed a soft kiss on Tony’s cheek. Tony had mumbled some gibberish sentences, but woke up because sleep was just gone anyway. He took a quick shower, to wash away the grease and dried sweat that had accumulated on his skin.

He dragged himself to the gym, and nearly fell asleep during the training. At one point, he left Friday on auto-pilot for his suit and closed his eyes. Clint’s arrow had hit the suit and it came crashing down, waking Tony up from his two-minute slumber.

And then, the Avengers Assemble alarm rang. At freaking 9am!!

Fury quickly gave them an overview of the situation, and Tony simply rolled his eyes. Apparently, A.I.M had developed some secret weapon and were testing it out in the streets of New York, which also happened to be a few blocks away from Avengers Tower. It’s as if they had no test facilities at their stupid secret lair. It was a device that shot out pinkish-purple beams and the organization _claimed_ that it was supposed to de-age people and living things.

But Earth’s Mightiest Heroes stepped in on time and managed to stop them from firing it at the civilians. The device didn’t have much of an effect on buildings, but it had hit a tree and the tree disappeared.

After an hour of playing hide-and-seek, literally, AIM gave up. Some scientists surrendered while others were forcefully taken into custody. S.H.I.E.L.D stepped in and took control of the investigation. They had obtained the weapon, and were gathering all the scientists around their security vans.

Or so they thought.

The Avengers finally wrapped up. They were ready to go back to the Tower, to have lunch, watch Friends or to do anything better than fighting AIM.

Iron Man was doing one last reconnaissance in the air, ensuring no clowns dressed in an ugly yellow suit was prancing around the street. Once done, he landed beside Steve, who was checking on Clint’s elbow. Natasha was also checking on Clint, making sure he was fine.

“It’s just a scratch, Cap,” Clint said. He was covered in sweat. And had apparently fallen off the building when an AIM scientist tried to be a spy and sneaked up on him. But Clint already knew about his presence, and kicked the AIM scientist. But he lost his balance. Thor had caught his comrade on time but his elbow came into contact with the brick building.

“I want the medics at the Tower to check this out,” Steve said firmly. He then turned his attention to Tony. “How we doing?”

Tony opened his suit and stepped out of it. His head had a little scratch, and it was coated with blood. Of course, there was a little pain. But it’s not to such a great degree. “I’m fine. You’re okay right?” Tony asked. All of them began walking to where Fury was standing, near a S.H.I.E.L.D van, which was a few meters away from them.

Steve shrugged. “I’m okay. Just worried about Clint.”

“Come on Steve!” Tony placed a hand on his shoulder. “Clint’s tough! He’ll recover.”

“Thanks Tony,” Clint smiled.

Bruce had just walked over to Nick Fury. This mission didn’t need the Hulk; Bruce was required to examine the device and write a full analysis report on his findings. Hence jolly green didn’t come out for battle today.

Clint and Tony were already arguing about what to have for lunch. Steve shook his head, smiling lightly at their little banter.

“We need to get Chinese!” Clint declared, leaning against Bruce. The rest of them stopped walking, and stood around. “It’s been too long, okay! And Tony, you had fish and chips only yesterday!”

“Half of fish and chips,” Natasha added while examining a tear on her suit.

“But it was still food!” Tony shrugged.

“That’s not even half. More of like, one-quarter,” Steve pursed his lips and turned to glare fondly at Tony.

“Hey, I wasn’t that hungry,” Tony raised his hands, as if he were surrendering.

“Of course,” Bruce piped in. “Coffee makes you full.”

“Coffee runs my soul!” Tony made his point dramatically, raising his arms.

“Ha! So your soul is brown!” Thor laughed.

“At least I add milk at times. Clint drinks it without a thing!” Tony pointed at Clint.

Clint, who heard his name suddenly being said, quickly turned his attention to them. He was examining his injury. “But black coffee wakes you the fuck up!” Clint argued back, with a soft voice.

Steve got triggered by the bad word. He turned to Clint and opened his mouth but Tony cut in.

“Watch thy language, Clint!” Tony snorted. Thor was grinning at this. “But your arm, we’re gonna get it checked thoroughly, okay?”

Clint sighed, while resting his head on Bruce’s shoulder.

“What do you mean escaped?!” Fury suddenly raised his voice, causing the Avengers to snap their attention back to the present situation. He had been talking to an agent using his walkie talkie.

Tony let out a little groan when he realized the battle wasn’t over yet. Everyone else readied their weapons. Tony was jogging back to where he had left his armor.

“Who escaped?” Bruce frowned, when everyone saw one of the scientists, in his tight yellow suit, pointing the device towards the Avengers.

“This isn’t over!” he exclaimed and activated the device.

Pinkish-purple ray shot out. Steve and the others managed to get out of the way. But Tony did not reach his suit on time. In fact, the beam had hit him, and it sent him flying a meter away from where he was; he was just about to enter his suit. The force of the beam made Tony faceplant right into his suit. A guttural scream left his mouth, as he continued flying ahead, and he felt a tingling sensation engulf him. Flying freely for a few seconds, Tony felt the wind slapping his face, and the buildings and sky blurred around him. The last thing he saw was the blue sky, before his whole world went black.

“Tony!” Steve shouted, looking horrified. He simply kept staring at his love hurtling across the road.

Some S.H.I.E.L.D agents ran to where the scientist was and grabbed him. The scientist was still firing, and this time, his beam shot up towards the sky. After a couple of seconds, the device vibrated, cracked and stopped. It crumbled, much to the shock of the scientist. The agents dragged him away, while one of them handed the broken device to Nick Fury.

Without giving themselves a break, the Avengers ran to look at what had happened to their teammate and friend. Clint reached there first, and the look on his face said it all.

“What the…” Natasha gasped.

“Who are you all? And why would you throw me down the road?” a 4-year-old Tony Stark asked them. He was lying down on the road, and holding his elbow. His face was all scrunched up in pain.

“A bad guy did. We’re here to help you,” Natasha said before Clint could open his mouth to reply.

Tony didn’t say anything. Clint helped him up. He also brushed away the dust from his shirt and checked for any injuries. The Black Sabbath shirt Tony was wearing, was practically hanging off him. His pants were completely off.

“Why am I wearing a dress?” kid Tony raised an eyebrow. “Whose big t-shirt is this?”

“We’ll get you new clothes,” Natasha assured the little boy, who was looking at her with a curious look. “And those belong to a friend.”

Tony nodded his head, already wondering why he had to wear their friend’s shirt. He looked around him. The buildings were really tall, and the street was littered with debris, as if a fight had just taken place. There were several agents standing a few meters away from him, all staring at him; especially that man with an eye patch. Tony then turned to look at the person standing beside him, and his eyes widened.

“Is that Cap?” he practically whispered.

Clint was checking on a cut Tony’s forearm had. He looked up at Tony and then at Steve.

“Yeah kiddo,” Clint said. “Yeah, that’s him in the flesh.”

“So, my dad did find you,” Tony cocked his head to the side. “How did you survive the icy cold waters?”

Memories of the ice and cold came rushing back to Steve. He managed to suppress a shudder. “I don’t know, Tony. But all I know is that I’m here now, and you’re here too.”

Tony now had a wide grin on his face. He forgot Clint was checking on his injuries and ran to Captain America, with his arms wide. Steve got the cue. He lifted Tony up, with a chuckle.

The shock of seeing the kid version of his boyfriend hadn’t really settled onto Steve. He was still in a daze.

“He has a couple of scratches,” Clint sighed. “First-aid kind.”

“I can clean him up,” Bruce nodded his head. He turned to give instructions to Friday, the AI running Tony’s armor. “Can you fly the armor back to Tony’s lab and shut it down?”

“With pleasure,” the AI replied. The armor closed and lifted off into the bright afternoon skies.

Tony was looking at it with awe. “Did dad build that?”

Steve smiled at how amazed Tony looked. “No Tony… Someone else did.”

He didn’t expect Tony’s face to fall in disappointment. “I thought it’d be a Stark tech.”

Tony pouted while resting his chin on Steve’s shoulder. It was such a cool technology, a robot that could fly! But dad didn’t build it so that was not a Stark tech. Tony turned away, curling his arms around Steve’s sweaty and warm neck.

“Actually, it kinda is,” Natasha answered.

“You know a lot of things,” Tony grinned. He stretched out his little arms to her, prompting Steve to pass him to her. She happily carried him and settled him on her hip. Tony smiled at her, eyes shining, and said, “So, tell me more about where I am and who you all are.”

…

On their way back, there was the usual press gathered at the entrance of the Tower. They were always snooping around for the scoop; with some journalists wanting to reach a milestone in their career. Once they saw a little boy on Natasha’s arms, they jumped in.

“Ms. Romanoff, is that your child?” a man asked.

“Who is this?” another man asked.

“Have the Avengers adopted a kid?” a female voice shouted.

“Who are his parents?” another female voice asked.

Steve sighed, before saying, “This boy is a son of one of our PR people. He was found in the street we were fighting in just now. No more comments.”

Tony was grinning, looking at the reporters who were trying to get his photos taken. He was also grinning because Captain America had just lied. And that was a myth broken for him. His dad always spoke about how Captain America was the king of righteousness and never lies and was the true definition of courage and freedom.

Tony already loved the future, because his dad’s points were being proven wrong.

With Natasha and Clint there, the press people couldn’t get a clear shot of little Tony’s face. They all huffed in frustration.

“Where is Iron Man?” one of the reporters asked.

“He flew in here earlier,” Bruce managed. He pointed at the ceiling, denoting that Tony was already up in the Tower.

“Ah, so that was him in the suit,” another journalist commented.

Satisfied that the press people had bought their story, the team walked into the elevator. Once the doors shut, they sighed a huge sigh of relief.

“That’s common,” little Tony shrugged, still hanging on to Natasha. “Dad dealt with the press. I always saw them outside my house, or even Stark International. Speaking of which, how’s dad’s company?”

Clint smiled at little Tony’s excitement. “It’s fine. You were the CEO for some time. But then you gave your secretary the position and became the chair man.”

“I did?” Tony said, in awe. “So is he doing his job well?”

“It’s a she,” Natasha corrected him. “She’s doing a real good job. She’s currently overseas.”

“I made a woman my CEO?!” Tony shouted in excitement. “I bet dad’s rolling in his grave now!”

Everyone laughed at his comment. Once the doors opened, the team, except for Bruce, stepped out.

“Everyone,” Bruce announced. “I will be in my lab, trying to get a cure. I’ll also examine this weapon AIM had. Anything, just buzz my intercom. Also, tell me if Tony needs his bandages changed or anything.”

“We will,” Natasha smiled. Bruce had already patched Tony up, using the first-aid kit S.H.I.E.L.D had provided them with.

Bruce pressed his level and the door shut buttons. Little Tony enthusiastically waved at him, and Bruce did wave back with a grin.

“He seems nice!” Tony said.

“Yeah, you and him are best friends,” Natasha laughed.

“People even call you both the _science bros_ ,” Clint explained further, grinning.

“Oh, that’s so cool!” Tony laughed out. “Hey, am I in a relationship?”

Natasha cleared her throat, while Thor let out a mighty laugh.

“I fear the wrath of a Captain if we dare speak of that matter, Tony,” Thor grinned.

“Guys,” Steve gritted his teeth. “I think we all have work to do. Natasha, you’re in-charge of taking care of Tony. Clint, I task you to write a detailed report about this mission, for the Avengers database. I want this by tomorrow night. Also, get your injuries checked out. Go to the medics now. Thor, you are in-charge of making sure Tony is totally entertained. I leave you to play games with him, and get him clothes and toys. We’ve told you about all those. I’ll look at today’s battle and come up with new strategies.”

“Steve,” Natasha pursed her lips. “I will do the report. Clint will get his injuries checked out and will rest. Thor will do what you say. But you, you are in-charge of Tony.”

Steve raised an eyebrow, while taking out his helmet.

“You’re not gonna argue,” Natasha smiled. “The strategies can wait. I’ll hand you over to the Captain, Tony.”

Tony eagerly clambered onto Steve’s arms. The rest of them walked away, leaving both of them alone.

Steve took this moment to digest the fact about how smart Tony actually was. Even as a kid, he looked at his surroundings and realized he wasn’t actually at home. He bravely interrogated one of the best spies in the world. And he was mature enough to acknowledge his situation. Tony Stark was truly a genius. Engineering was his forte, but he also knew how to adapt. And at that age, adapting was a big feat to be accomplished.

By now, Tony knew was in the future, his adult-self became a super hero, his good friends’ names were Ceen Bartton, Nataasha aka Nat, Stee Rogers, Buce Banner aka Doctor Banner and Thor, an actual demi-God, and that his company actually did manage to make flying cars, but were not for sale, yet.

“Hey Cap,” Tony spoke up. “How does it feel living in a generation you don’t actually belong to?”

Steve was completely taken aback by his question. “Uh… it does feel weird at times. It feels weird to be living in this luxurious Tower, when most of my life I spent being poor. The memories I have and the memories I’m creating now are really different. I still feel…” Steve sighed.

“Like a man out of time,” Tony completed the sentence. “I know Cap. I feel that too. I know that this is my future. But me, my four-year-old self doesn’t belong here.”

Steve held Tony closer to him. He gave Tony’s back a few slow pats, hoping they both would be okay.

At this time, Tony realized something. “You know, if my dad had found you earlier, this would’ve been us then!”

Steve felt tears prickle his eyes. But he didn’t let them reach the surface. He brushed back Tony’s hair, and smiled at him. “That’s true. But now that we’re both here, I bet we can play a game of tag, or anything.”

Tony tilted his head to the side, and let out a chuckle. “Aye aye Captain! But first, I need clothes.”

…

By lunch time, Thor made sure Tony had some clothes to wear.

The team had made sure Thor knew how earth stuff worked. Hence, they taught him the basics of ordering anything (from food to clothes) and also showed him what happens during Halloween. After nearly 2 years being with the Avengers, Thor even mastered the use of a mobile device, although he doesn’t really like it.

Thor had also ordered several toys online; with the occasional help from Clint on picking the right toys. So far, only a drawing block with crayons and a toy car had arrived.

Clint was all patched up. He was playing Monopoly with Tony, for over an hour, surprised at how much of properties the 4 year old had bought. At the end, Clint was real close to declaring bankruptcy. Thor simply laughed at that, and had invited Tony to play a game of Uno with him.

Tony then went on to scribbling on the drawing block. He used various colors and simply made his own random design. All these he did after beating Thor in Uno.

Steve had joined them after a good shower. When Tony, saw him, he abandoned the crayons and ran to Steve.

“You smell like freedom!” Tony stated, with a mischievous glint in his eyes, after being lifted up by Steve’s strong arms!!

“He always makes that joke,” Clint said softly to Thor, and both of them were laughing.

“Thanks Tony,” Steve rolled his eyes.

The lot of them then ate lunch. They ordered a Chinese takeout, and enjoyed the meal. Tony really loved the food. He wished his time had this kind of variety; there was but it’s not like Howard allowed it.

Tony also realized that he felt his heart beat slightly faster whenever he was around Steve. It was perhaps the excitement of seeing his inspiration, his hero after a long time. He really idolized Steve. His dad poured out stories of the great Captain America, the fearless leader. Seeing Steve in real life was like a religious experience for him.

After lunch, little Tony got bored of playing board and card games. Thor decided to play hide-and-seek with him.

“But the Tower is huge!” Tony pointed out.

“Then, we shall only use this level, and one floor down for the game!” Thor suggested enthusiastically.

And that was how Tony found himself walking at the level below the communal level. He saw a few room doors left ajar, and decided to hide inside one of them. The room he entered was looking quite neat. Pretty grand too. It looked like a hotel suite, with the television mounted on the wall opposite the bed and an attached bathroom to the room. There was a couch and a small round coffee table at the side, right beside the entrance. At the opposite end, right in front of the window, there was a study table. There were several books stacked neatly on it, with pens and pencils scattered around. There was also an easel with an empty canvas, standing right beside the table.

Tony decided to hide under the big bed, pretty sure Thor wouldn’t be able to find him underneath. He caught a glimpse of a few photo frames that was on the bedside table. And Tony froze.

He turned his attention back to them. There was a group shot of the Avengers, the camera capturing a rare moment where all of them were smiling. Tony saw his older-self grinning like a fool with both arms thrown casually around Natasha’s and Steve’s shoulders respectively.

Tony also saw another photo frame. This one had only his older version and Steve. And in this photo, Tony was kissing Steve, and Steve was smiling.

His genius mind connected all the dots. So, he was in a relationship… with Captain America! He let out a loud gasp.

“Realization?” Steve’s voice was heard.

Tony nearly threw the frames at Steve, who was leaning against the wall near the door, thinking it was an intruder. And then, his little eyes widened.

“I didn’t mean to touch them…” he said. He placed the frames back, and looked at Steve. His lips wobbled, and tears gathered in his bright looking chocolate brown eyes. “I’m sorry… please don’t scold me… I… I never meant to be a disappointment.”

Steve frowned. “No, you were never a disappointment. Also, you can take a look at the photos. I won’t bite.”

Tony raised both his eyebrows. He turned back to look at the photos; especially at the one with Tony and Steve. He then climbed up onto the bed, forgetting about the game he was playing with Thor, and Steve joined him.

“So I see you’ve realized,” Steve sighed.

Tony moved closer, and snuggled onto Steve. Steve curled an arm around Tony, and the other arm brushed back his hair. Tony relished the warmth Steve’s body provided him with. He sighed in content.

“You’re not a disappointment, Tony,” Steve said.

“Dad always said I was one,” Tony shrugged.

“He’s wrong,” Steve said firmly. “You’re one of the best people I’ve ever been with. You’re also a genius, Tony. You’ve made some pretty good inventions.”

Tony nodded his head, trying to believe that Steve had just complimented him.

“So… what did I invent?” he asked.

“Let’s see… You made an arc reactor, in a cave, while being kidnapped by terrorists. You had shrapnel in you, and the arc reactor made sure they didn’t reach your heart.” Steve started, hoping the mention of adult Tony’s past experiences won’t scare little Tony too much.

“Are you serious?!” Tony bounced on the bed. He was staring at Steve in wonder. “I managed to make an arc reactor…. To fit my chest area! Oh… so that’s what that weird feeling is.” Tony ran a hand across his chest.

“You took it out a few months back,” Steve held Tony tighter. “You’re fine now.”

“Wow, so I got kidnapped by terrorists…” Tony thought out aloud.

“You also made Jarvis, the AI that runs the house. You have Friday, the other AI that runs your Iron Man suits,” Steve said, desperately trying to change the topic.

“Did you say Jarbis?!” Tony nearly screamed. “Is he here?”

“I am always here, young sir,” Jarvis replied coolly.

Tony immediately looked up at the ceiling. He was grinning so much, it made Steve’s heart melt. He too, was smiling.

But in a split second, Steve saw Tony’s grin vanish.

“My butler Jarbis is gone too, isn’t he?” Tony asked Steve, with an innocent look on his face. “That’s why I made him and named him after Jarbis.”

Steve felt a pang of sadness hit him. There were a lot of things adult Tony haven’t told him. Like, how close he was to his butler and to what extent Howard had abused him, in any form. He’s now learning them, bit by bit, and he wished he could talk to adult Tony about it.

“Cap?” Tony started, eyes welling up. “Is this how it feels like to grow up? Everyone you love going away?”

Steve couldn’t help it. He picked up the young boy and gave him a hug, knowing full well what little Tony was going through was nearly what Steve went through a while back. Tony hugged Steve back, burying his face into his firm shoulder. He let out a sob.

“Cap, I don’t want to grow up!” Tony cried. He adjusted himself and looked at Steve. “I’d rather face dad’s insults, and be with mom and Jarbis and Ana! I’ll… I’ll tell dad where you might be! Then.. we’ll find you and… and we all can live happily, Cap!” Tony was practically begging.

“Tony,” Steve whispered, looking directly into Tony’s eyes. “You can’t do that…”

Tears rolled down Tony’s soft cheeks. He looked away, trying to calm himself down.

“Jarbis?” Tony called out. “I love you Jarbis.”

Steve forgot how to breathe for one second.

“Young sir,” Jarvis replied. “I believe I do the same too.”

Steve settled Tony on his hips and walked towards the window. Both of them looked at the cornflower blue skies, and Steve wiped away the little boy’s tears.

“How did I make it this far?” Tony asked softly.

“You’re strong. You have willpower,” Steve replied. “Don’t worry about your future, Tony. You made it.”

Tony rested his head on Steve’s shoulder, and felt his pulse at the crook of his neck. He simply stared at the New York skyline.

“You also have a private lab here. You built a couple of bots and are really affectionate about them,” Steve smiled, reminiscing the times when Tony fondly scolded his robots.

“What?!” Tony asked, looking surprised.

And that was how Steve found himself running after a hyperactive little Tony down the hallway. Both of them collided onto Thor, who proudly declared he had found Tony. The three of them walked to Tony’s lab together, with Thor piggybacking an excited Tony.

…

After dinner, Tony was sitting down with Natasha on the couch. They both were watching cartoons, with Tony commenting on how much the animation had changed. Tony said he really loved the Scooby-Doo series and he was in for a pleasant surprise when a cartoon channel played the 1960s version. He was glued to the TV screen, with Natasha making sure Tony was fine and no danger was lurking around him.

After the show ended, both of them spoke about ice-cream, flying cars and the Avengers. Somehow, their conversation topic changed to Steve.

“So, you really like Captain America?” Natasha asked, with an eyebrow raised. At this time, Clint had joined them. So, Tony was seated between the two super spies.

“I can say... I love him.” Tony looked at Natasha shyly.

“Wow, you’re kidding right?” Clint laughed. “Because I heard, when the first time you two met once you grew older, you two fought with each other.”

Tony’s jaw dropped, and his mouth formed the shape of a perfect o.

“And I got to witness that firsthand,” Natasha added on.

“I fought with Captain America?” Tony asked them both, still looking shocked.

“Well, if it’s going to make you feel better, you’re now fighting the bad guys _with_ him,” Clint assured the little boy.

“You both are… well, more than friends,” Natasha said. She was curling Tony’s hair using her finger.

“I know,” Tony said. “I saw the photos on Cap’s bedside table.”

Both Clint and Natasha looked at each other. They nodded at each other, realizing how smart Tony really was.

“Since I know myself, I just want to tell you this,” Tony said. “I’m not good at saying how much I love people. The only people I ever said that to was to Jarbis, Ana and indirectly to my mom. But… I saw the photos on the table. Adult me must really love you guys a lot. I only spent a few hours with you all and I already love you all!”

Clint looked like he was about to cry. He looked at the little boy, and deep down, he knew little Tony was telling them what adult Tony couldn’t. Natasha on the other hand, gave Tony’s forehead a kiss.

“We love you too you know,” she said softly. “Not just because of the numerous tech upgrades you give us. We love you for who you are, for giving us a home, for giving us a family. Most of us never really had one of those. Tony, thank you for all those.”

Clint turned away to wipe his tears. “Yeah, we gotta thank you for that.”

“I never really had any friends,” Tony shrugged. “But I’m so glad older me does!”

Both the spies started to laugh, with Clint wiping away more tears. Thor joined them after a few seconds, and he placed Mjolnir on the coffee table.

“Why do you have a hammer?” Tony asked him.

“I use that to call lightning and cast it onto the bad people,” Thor replied. “If I swing it fast and right, I can also achieve the state of flight.”

Tony was really mesmerized by what Thor was saying. He pushed himself down the couch, and went to touch the handle. To carry it.

“Careful,” Clint warned. “Not many people can lift it. They can only lift it if they’re worthy.”

When Tony’s arms neared the handle, blue sparks appeared on it. They were moving downwards, to where Tony’s hand was going to land. There was a crackling sound, soft but audible enough for everyone seated there. Thor frowned, wondering what was actually happening. Mjolnir let out a buzz, and when Tony touched the handle, the sparks and sounds stopped.

“Wait, Ceen?” Tony directed his question at Clint. “Only some people can lift this?”

“Uh… yeah,” Clint replied.

Tony let go of the handle, and the blue sparks appeared once more. This time, they went in the reverse direction and disappeared.

“I don’t think I’m worthy,” Tony said softly. “Dad always says how I’m good for nothing, and that I’m not worthy of the Stark mantle.”

Natasha could sense Tony quoting his dad’s exact words. She gritted her teeth, wishing they were transported back into time so that she could knock some sense into Howard Stark.

“I mean, I have an idea to make a circuit board, hoping it can impress him. It’s so difficult to impress my dad,” little Tony sighed shakily. Tears fell out of his eyes.

“Tony,” Thor called him, using a gentle voice. He lifted his head up, and was surprised to see his irises completely turned to blue. The color however, dissolved, and Thor found himself staring into Tony’s chocolate brown eyes once again. “I… I uh… I don’t know your father. But I do know you. And your father was absolutely wrong about you. Don’t worry, Tony. Your future is really bright, and you will make a fine friend and brother.”

Tony smiled at Thor, and titled his head to the side. Thor brushed back Tony’s soft hair, and was smiling at him.

“Sorry to break the little moment but, I think it’s time for the little one to sleep,” Clint pointed at the time, that read, 10pm.

“Okay Tony, you choose. You want to sleep in your own room or with Steve?” Natasha asked. She pointed two fingers at him, indicating that he had to choose. Tony picked her middle finger, not really surprising everyone.

Adult Tony always chose the middle finger, if his options were laid out that way.

“It’s your room then,” Natasha smiled. She lifted the boy up and everyone then went back to their rooms.

Once they entered Tony’s level, the little boy ran to his room. Since the room wasn’t touched for a long time (Tony moved in to Steve’s quarters six months ago), it looked really neat. Everything was clean. Tony jumped onto his bed, and squealed when he saw the Avengers teddy bears laid out for him. He took the Captain America one and hugged it.

“Oh my God Nat look it’s you!” Tony giggled. He stretched out the Black Widow teddy bear to her. She took it and sat down at the edge of the bed.

“This is Iron Man?” Tony asked in awe. He took the Iron Man bear and examined it. “I actually made a suit of armor…”

“Yes genius, you did,” Natasha laughed. “It’s time to go to bed, little one.”

After changing him into a pajama, Natasha pulled the blanket towards Tony, once he was settled in. Tony chose to hug the Captain America bear, while the rest of them were laid out neatly beside him, also covered by the blanket.

“Nat?” Tony called out softly. “Can you tell Thor I said thanks? I never really had any soft toys. I really love the bears.”

“I will, sweetheart,” Natasha assured him. She settled in beside him, brushing back his soft hair. Tony fell asleep fast. And once Natasha was sure Tony will be fine, she closed his room door.

“Jarvis, warn us if Tony is in danger. Keep an eye on him,” she ordered.

“I will.” Jarvis replied firmly.

…

Tony found himself tossing and turning on his bed. He woke up, feeling sweat dripping down his forehead. His room was really dark, and Natasha wasn’t beside him anymore. He was having a little nightmare of his dad chasing him around the house. He still felt scared, and lightly shaken. He didn’t like being alone in a big room right after a nightmare. So he did what he always did after a nightmare.

“Jarbis?” he called out.

“Young master,” Jarvis replied. “Would you like to go to Captain Rogers’ room?”

Tony grinned. “You sure know me!” he took his Captain America and Iron Man teddy bears and walked out of the room, with Jarvis showing the way.

“Hey Jarbis, before I go to Cap’s room, I’ll go to the kitchen. I need water!” Tony said. Jarvis continued to guide little Tony, now to the communal level kitchen.

Everything was dark there, and Tony saw the time. It was 3.30 in the morning.

“Jarbis, light,” Tony said. The kitchen light flickered on.

Tony saw the sink, and it was pretty high. So he pushed a chair towards it after placing his two teddy bears on the floor, side by side. He took a glass and climbed onto the chair. He filled it with tap water, and gulped it down immediately. He wiped away his sweat and sighed, feeling slightly better.

“Jarbis, is everyone asleep?” he asked.

“Yes sir,” Jarvis replied. “Agent Romanoff and Master Barton are asleep in their quarters. Master Odinson is also asleep. Dr. Banner just went to bed, after four failed attempts at finding a cure for you. And so did Captain America. He was drawing just three and a half minutes ago.”

“What was he drawing?” Tony asked. He rinsed the glass and placed it back on the rack. He then slowly climbed down the chair.

Jarvis enabled one of the holographic screens. And it showed exactly what Steve was drawing.

“Is that me?” Tony asked.

“Indeed sir, it’s your younger version,” Jarvis replied coolly.

“That’s so cool…” Tony said, as if in a daze. He slowly pushed back the chair. He picked up his teddy bears and went to the entrance of the kitchen.

“Jarbis, I have a question about Dr. Banner,” Tony said. “Everyone were saying how he has a Hulk and that the Hulk’s dangerous. Where is Dr. Banner keeping the Hulk?”

Jarvis immediately showed him all the reports and footage of the Hulk through the holographic screen. And Tony read the report while watching the footage. He saw the Hulk fighting the Abomination on a street. He also saw the footage of the Avengers, with Hulk fighting alongside them.

“Ah, so it’s like a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde personality,” Tony spoke to himself. He scanned through the S.H.I.E.L.D reports, and one particular information stood out. “Jarbis, remind me to ask Dr. Banner about-”

The holographic screen got cut off and the kitchen light flickered off.

“Uh… Jarbis?” Tony called out, fear creeping back onto him.

There was no response.

“Mr. Stark,” a female voice suddenly spoke up. “I’m Friday, and I run your armor, most of the time. I’m only activated when Jarvis has been disabled. There are intruders, Mr. Stark, and they’re headed for the communal level.”

“Friday!” Tony shouted out in panic. “Tell Cap! Tell Nat!”

There was no response from Friday either. Tony started to back away from that area when he started to hear the noise coming from the stair area.

“We need to find him and test out this…” a man dressed in an ugly yellow suit opened the stairway door, that was right beside the kitchen. “There he is! Get him!”

Another man, dressed up the same way started to chase Tony down the hallway. Tony let out a gut wrenching scream and ran to the elevator. But it was not working.

“Your friends are not going to save you today, Tony Stark!” the man said, letting out a laughter that sounded plain evil.

“Sayonara to your knee-caps, ugly yellow man!” Tony shouted. He gave the man’s knee a nice kick, dislocating it. The man shouted in pain and collapsed onto the floor. Tony stomped on his other knee, and ran away before he could catch him.

“Little annoying brat!” the other man shouted. He took out a gun and tried to fire at Tony, who was running towards him. Tony had to take the stairs, to tell the Avengers about men dressed in ugly yellow suits.

He ran in a zig-zag manner, making it hard for the man to shoot him. Tony threw the Iron Man teddy bear at his face, and tripped and fell onto the floor. He was only two meters away from the stairway door.

“Nowhere to run,” the man laughed. “Oh Tony Stark, AIM will have you now and we would like to thank you in advance for your services.” He walked in front of the stairway door and blocked it.

Just a level below, Steve Rogers was trying to sleep. But he woke up once he heard screams coming and a few loud thuds.

“Jarvis, come in,” he said. “Jarvis?” he called out even firmly. “Friday, you there?”

None of the AIs were responding, and Steve knew this was a recipe for disaster. He quickly slipped into a pair of track pants and a shirt, and took his shield.

Two levels above the communal level, Thor was soundly asleep. Mjolnir was on the small coffee table in his room. It was vibrating, ready to take flight. The vibration became wilder, and the sound of uru hitting wood instantly woke Thor up. He rubbed his eyes, turning to look at Mjolnir.

It was glowing, with energy sparks flying out, and Thor could hear the sound of thunder. The next thing he knows, Mjolnir took flight, and smashed his door and flew right away.

Thor immediately figured out something was wrong. He rummaged through his study table and found his Avengers ID card. He activated the Assemble button, and that was how every single Avenger, except Tony, found themselves communicating from their rooms to Thor, using their cards.

“Mjolnir smashed my door and took flight!” Thor exclaimed. “I have an eerie feeling. I am not so sure where Mjolnir landed.”

“I don’t think it’s a coincidence,” Steve replied. “I heard screams and thuds from our communal level. Plus, the AIs are down.”

“Intruders probably,” Bruce Banner suggested. He sounded slightly out of breath, which meant he was already going up the stairs to be with his team.

“Intruders smart enough to disable Tony’s AIs,” Natasha also suggested.

“Tony…” Clint said. “You think he’s in danger?”

“I think we need to find out!” Steve said firmly.

“I just asked Heimdall to show me where my hammer landed,” Thor suddenly spoke up. And boy, did he sound mad. “It’s at our communal level, and so are two AIM scientists and our friend, Tony.”

Every single Avenger dashed out of their rooms with their weapons. All of them took the stairs, running to the communal level.

At the level itself, Mjolnir had crash landed right beside the four-year-old Tony Stark. He immediately reached out for the handle, because he had nothing to defend himself with. More AIM scientists jumped out from the vents above. They were suddenly everywhere.

“Thanks Myuh-nee,” Tony whispered.

He could hear the Avengers shouting his name and running up the stairs.

He grabbed Mjolnir's handle, and whatever happened next to the AIM scientists, was worthy enough to be included in history.


	2. Steve and His Friends aka His Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony fights the AIM personnel with the Avengers and later, adult Tony returns back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Here's the next chapter as promised.  
> Thank you for all your support, guys! I truly truly appreciate it!!! Love you guys so much!  
> I hope you will enjoy this update.  
> Happy reading!

Fear. If anyone asked any one of the AIM scientists that managed to break into Avengers Tower that night how they felt when they were facing Tony, fear was the word they would use to describe it.

Once he lifted Mjolnir, 4-year-old Tony felt the power surging through him. He forgot everything about being worthy and all. Right now, he was focused on saving his own ass from these men dressed in ugly yellow suits.

Mjolnir was filled with energy and life, waiting for Tony’s command. Tony’s irises had also turned blue, and he had blue sparks occasionally appearing around him. He looked at each of the AIM personnel, showing them that he wasn’t really afraid of them.

“Go!” one of the men shouted. All the AIM scientists lined up in front of him started to charge at him. They seemed to forget that they were going after a little boy.

The only difference was that this little boy was now wielding Thor’s mighty hammer and none of them actually have the chance to escape that.

Tony raised up the hammer and lightning was called. The communal level’s long paneled glass windows shattered as lightning came charging through. Tony slammed the hammer onto the ground with all his might. A solid crack ran across the floor, and the place felt like an earthquake had hit it. The scientists running lost their balance and fell down. The floor below them, near the elevator at the left end of the hallway, gave way. Some of the scientists fell through that hole to the level below.

There were more scientists running from the right end of the hallway. Tony swung the hammer ferociously, hitting some of the scientists right onto their abdomen area. He also electrocuted some of them.

Steve Rogers slammed open the stairway door. When he saw what was going on inside, his jaws dropped.

“Holy fuck…” Clint whispered, looking at little Tony easily knocking off a few AIM personnel using Thor’s hammer.

Steve couldn’t even scold Clint about his language. He was too surprised to even utter a single word. Natasha, Bruce and Thor watched in silence, as little Tony single-handedly fought off waves of AIM personnel.

“It’s the Avengers!” one of the scientists pointed at the figures standing near the door. “We need to regroup!”

“How do we go back without the boy?” another scientist asked. “We will die!”

“All personnel, target the kid using your taser guns!” one of the scientists, the leader of this group, ordered.

“Not on my watch!” Steve shouted. He was really protective of Tony and couldn’t just stand there and watch them electrocute him. “Avengers Assemble!” Steve ordered.

They all ran into the living room. They weren’t expecting a hole formed at the end of their hallway though.

Tony let out soft grunts each time he hit a scientist. He turned behind, just in time to catch the heroes running in.

“Cap look out!” Tony warned him. Steve raised his shield just on time. A few scientists who were still standing, were firing at Steve, from the right end of the hallway. After the bullets stopped, Steve moved his shield down, and glared at the scientists. Captain America glaring at you would make you want to piss your pants, and that was exactly what the AIM scientists nearly did. Steve ran down the hallway to get them.

Natasha on the other hand, fired her widow bites at any scientist who dared to go near Tony. Clint shot an explosive arrow at the ceiling above him. It ticked off, and the ceiling blasted off, making a few AIM scientists hiding in there fall down. There were three of them, and all groaned in pain.

“Hey, I didn’t know we had a pest problem,” Clint laughed. He fired another arrow, that casted a net on the three of them. “And you and your buddies are not welcome here!” he gritted his teeth.

This time, the leader’s assistant had taken his gun out. It was a taser that shot out beams. He fired it at Tony.

Tony immediately raised Mjolnir, and a light blue force field surrounded the little boy. Tony closed his eyes, and his face scrunched up as he focused on making sure the force he was resisting wouldn’t throw him backwards.

“I didn’t know your hammer could do that,” Clint commented.

“Mjolnir is protecting Tony,” Thor said firmly. He ran and grabbed the assistant that was firing at Tony. Both of them fell right down the big hole, and Clint heard a lot of screams emerge from below them.

“You!” Natasha snapped. “Will give me answers.”

She dragged the leader with her out the door, to the stairway.

“Tony, are you okay?” Clint asked.

“Where is Doktor Banner?!” Tony asked, instead of answering Clint’s question.

Just then, both of them heard the distinct roar of the Hulk. Clint jumped away, and ran towards Tony just in time, and the Hulk crashed onto the communal level, from one level down. The flooring gave way even further, creating a huge mess.

“You have good instincts,” Tony smiled at Clint, still holding onto Mjolnir.

“Well you…” Clint breathed in and out. He looked into Tony’s blue eyes and felt goosebumps form on his skin. “Are worthy…”

Tony’s smile widened.

The Hulk roared and punched one of the scientists. Thor was slowly climbing up to join them.

At this point, another one of the scientists who managed to get up despite being beaten up, tried to fire at Thor.

“No!” Tony shouted. Beside him, Clint readied an arrow.

Tony ran with Mjolnir raised high up, and the Hulk too, ran towards the man.

“Oh shit.” Clint whispered to himself. He raised his hands to shield himself.

The Hulk’s fists and Thor’s hammer came into contact.

For a moment, the only thing visible in the communal level was a bright light. Clint flew back. Once he landed hardly on the floor, he frantically searched for his bow, and his hearing aids that had fallen off. He quickly found his hearing aids that were right beside him and secured them. He also saw where he had landed. He was inches away from the broken long paneled window, also, inches away from falling to his death.

He let out a gasp, and looked down. He saw his bow and a few shattered glass pieces already plunging towards the street. Also, he heard a little boy screaming. He raised his arm, instincts telling him to catch whatever that was incoming. But Tony flew out too fast, and was already falling 90 floors down. Clint’s eyes widened in alarm.

“Clint! Your bow, did you lose it?” Steve asked once the dust settled.

“Screw my bow, Cap!” Clint said in a high-pitched voice. “Tony is falling to his death!”

Steve felt himself black out for a second. He quickly regained his composure, and leapt to where Clint was. Thor managed to climb up despite the resistance (like debris), and stood near their coffee table. He looked determined.

Mjolnir was on the floor. Suddenly, it rose up and flew out of the window. It dived down. And Thor knew what was going to happen. He was counting down the seconds and closed his eyes.

Steve managed to get to the window, and saw Clint’s bow disappear down. He also saw Tony falling back first. Steve felt a lump rise in his throat, and wished he could do more to save his Tony.

Mjolnir was picking up speed.

Tony saw the night sky quickly moving further away from him. The cool New York air was literally hitting his face. He thought that this was it. He was going to die and would not live to be his adult self. He thought of closing his eyes and accepting his fate. That was when he saw Mjolnir charging towards him, leaving a smoky blue trail in its path.

He raised an arm up and tried and tried so hard to grab the handle. He let out a cry and struggled mid-air, already losing consciousness. But then he looked up, back at the Tower. He caught a familiar figure staring down at him.

He recognized the figure. It was Captain America! Slipping between consciousness and unconsciousness, Tony saw a particular memory floating around him.

 

_Howard Stark was scolding Tony, insulting him, telling him that he’ll always be a failure._

_“You’re not worthy of the Stark mantle, Tony!” Howard screamed. He threw some files at Tony’s direction, scaring the boy even more. “Get lost!!”_

_Tony cried out loud and scrambled to get to the door. He managed to turn the handle and got out._

_“Look at him!! This is perfection, Tony. Something that’s not you,” Howard spat._

_He threw a Captain America doll at him and slammed his office door. Tony walked back to his room, crying. He looked at the doll, looking all mighty. He sobbed and thought of what Captain America might have done. Of course, his little mind idolized Steve. He pictured Cap to sock Howard in the jaw and carry Tony, trying to stop the little boy from crying._

_He also couldn’t help it but picture his Cap motivating him._

_“Hang in there Tony. I got you,” he’d picture Cap say. “Do this for me, Tony.”_

_“One day,” little Tony sobbed. “I will be someone. I will do this for you, Cap!” he let out another sob._

 

In mid-air, now, little Tony’s eyes welled up. Tears spilled out. And Tony saw Steve’s figure getting tinier.

“I’ll do it for Cap.” He said. “For you Cap!” Tony cried out.  

And this time, he reached out for Mjolnir and grabbed it. A streak of lightning hit the hammer, powering it up.

Upstairs, Thor opened his eyes. “Mjolnir, to me!” he commanded.

“Thor, you know what you’re doing right?” Steve turned to him and asked. His eyes were watery.

“Trust me Captain,” Thor replied confidently. “Tony is a smart boy.”

Below, a subtle blue glow formed around Tony’s body. His eyes were once again turning light blue, and he managed to keep himself awake. He then allowed the hammer to guide him, and they both dived down toward the ground.

They made a steep turn upwards and were headed back to the communal level.

At the level itself, Thor was focusing so hard on getting Mjolnir _and_ Tony back to him. The Hulk had also gotten up after falling down. He realized Tony had flown out of the window and wanted to catch him. The Hulk really loved Tony. And he was protective of the kid version. Hence, he couldn’t just stand there and let his friend fall. He attempted to run across the room and jump out to rescue his friend.

“No friend Hulk!” Thor shouted. He used his left hand to stop the Hulk from going further toward the window.

“Hulk, Tony is already making his way up!” Clint tried. But the mention of Tony’s name aggravated the Hulk even further. He tried to move, but Thor’s grip was so strong, even the Incredible Hulk couldn’t move forward.

Tony felt adrenaline pumping around his body, because of the speed at which he was traveling at. He let out a shout and looked down. There was a car parked below and it was beginning to look like a toy car.

“Woaaah!!!” Tony screamed, with a little smile on his face.

Back at the Tower, the Hulk had grabbed Thor. Mjolnir and Tony were already headed towards the broken window.

“C… come on.” Thor gritted his teeth. Hulk then gave Thor’s stomach a punch using his free hand.

Thor flew back and crash landed into the kitchen.

“Oh crap,” Clint whispered.

Mjolnir entered the communal level when Tony decided to let go of the handle. The hammer continued to fly towards Thor, who was lying flat on his back in the kitchen.

Steve had caught Tony. “I got you, I got you,” he kept whispering to little Tony while hugging him.

“I know, Cap,” Tony whispered back. “You always got me.”

Tony relished in the warmth provided by Steve’s body. He placed his head on Steve’s chest, and looked up. Some AIM scientists were slowly getting up, after gaining back their energy and strength.

“Guys,” Clint said, looking at the men gathering.

“Get ready, Avengers,” Steve firmly said. Tony managed to look at Steve. He let out a shudder when he saw the look of determination with a mixture of anger written across his face. He pressed his face into Steve’s chest, and felt Steve’s arm curling around him in a protective manner.

Thor was already up, with a nosebleed. And the Hulk was ready for some hardcore smashing.

“We need the boy,” one of the AIM scientists said. “After we’re done with our experiments, you can have him back.”

“We beg to differ,” Steve firmly said. He stood up and readied his shield.

One of the AIM scientists moved to get Tony. Steve threw his shield at him and knocked him out. Tony let out another shudder and hid behind Steve’s leg.

“Tony? Just wait for us, dear,” Steve said as he caught his shield.

After that, the Avengers ran forward, ready to fight the AIM personnel.

“You suck without your bow!” one of the men shouted at Clint.

Clint then took one of his arrows from his quiver and activated it. He placed it on the guy’s head and gave him a kick. The arrow electrocuted the AIM guy.

“And you swallow!” Clint told the guy before moving on.

Tony kept moving back, feeling scared. The ugly yellow suit man said he wanted Tony. At one point, he simply wanted to give himself up to the AIM people. But he knew Cap would never allow that. He was hoping no one would get badly injured or even die today.

One of the AIM guys was thrown to where Tony was standing. He landed at Tony’s feet. Tony quickly moved back, but stopped when he realized he was standing at the edge, near the broken window. He had also accidentally kicked a few pieces of glass below.

Suddenly, the AIM guy who was at his feet grabbed Tony by his ankle.

“Let me go!” Tony shouted.

Thor realized Tony was in danger. He threw his hammer at him. “Tony! Use Mjolnir!”

Tony caught the hammer. He called down lightning and slammed the hammer onto the AIM guy that was holding his ankle. Tony then scrambled to where the couch was and climbed onto it. Once he passed Mjolnir back to Thor, he watched the others fighting the AIM personnel with fervor. And he was still wondering what quality he had that enabled him to join this group of heroes.

“Knock them out everyone!” Steve ordered.

The Hulk roared in response, but his beatings didn’t seem like they were knocking the AIM scientists out. It seemed much worse.

 

After some time, they seemed to have thrashed most of the AIM scientists. Combat wasn’t the AIM guys’ forte and neither was science; that’s what Tony thought. He got ready when he saw Thor nod his head at his direction. Thor threw Mjolnir to him and he caught it. He ran across the couch and jumped up, calling down lighting. He raised the hammer mid-air and finished off the last few AIM scientists by slamming the hammer onto the floor. Even more flooring gave way, and Clint nearly fell through it.

Then, the stairway door opened and the leader walked through. Tony’s defense mode kicked in. He called more lightning and casted it on the leader, letting out a shout.

“Stop it!” Natasha cried out. “He has the cure and we need him alive!!”

But Tony couldn’t stop. In his mind, the only thing that was important was the safety of his adult self’s friends. So he kept Mjolnir targeted at the leader, almost beginning to fry him.

“Tony,” Thor said firmly. “You have extreme powers. Friend, stop this. We need him alive.”

Tony tried to shake the emotions off. He let out a grunt, trying to register Thor’s words.

“Tony! Listen to us!” Steve tried. When it didn’t work, he raised his voice. “That’s an order, Avenger!!!”

Hearing Steve shout at him made Tony crumble on the inside. He dropped the hammer instantly and sat down on the floor. He drew his knees to his chest and curled up, starting to cry.

“What happened?” Clint asked, frowning.

Steve walked to Tony and crouched down in front of him. “Tony?” he asked softly.

Little Tony slowly looked up, eyes red with tears threatening to fall. “I’m… I’m… sorry, Cap,” he whispered.

“Hey, hey,” Steve said softly, smiling. “I’m not angry at you, Tony. We needed you to stop. That’s why I had to raise my voice. Come here.” He ruffled Tony’s hair.

Tony got up and hugged Steve, burying his face into Steve’s neck. He was crying more now. Steve gave Tony’s cheek a kiss while trying to calm him down. He slowly walked back to where his team was gathered, careful not to fall into the hole.

“We need Bruce for this,” Natasha sighed.

“Buce? Hulk?” Tony asked. He quickly wiped his tears and stretched out his little arms to the Hulk.

The others were about to stop him, but Steve stopped them instead. He allowed Tony to go to the Hulk. The Hulk turned to look at little Tony, and his look softened. He went closer to the little boy.

Clint gulped, hoping nothing would happen to Tony. Natasha was carefully watching what was unfolding in front of them, while holding the leader so that he wouldn’t escape.

The Hulk raised his arms to take Tony. He hesitated for a while, thinking he was just a big sack of destruction and trouble. But Tony’s innocent look and hope shining in his eyes was more than enough to convince even the Hulk, that he had second chances no matter what.

And then, the Hulk lifted Tony. He carefully brought him closer, not wanting to squash the little one. Tony threw his little arms around the Hulk’s neck, embracing him. He placed his head on his shoulder and closed his eyes, feeling the Hulk cradling him. The Hulk closed his eyes and rocked his body side-to-side, as if he were trying to get Tony to sleep.

Suddenly, the Hulk let out a grunt. He fell to his knees, still holding onto Tony. Thor attempted to grab Tony away, in case something was to happen to him. But he stopped because the Hulk was changing into Bruce and he was still cradling Tony.

Bruce knelt down and let out a groan, slowly opening his eyes. He looked at his teammates staring at him in awe. He was even more surprised to find himself holding onto little Tony.

“Buce?” Tony asked softly, looking at him.

“Tony…” Bruce said softly. “What…”

“The Hulk came out,” Tony smiled. His eyes were still watery, and that smile he had made Bruce’s heart melt.

He slowly got up and settled Tony onto his hip.

“Bruce,” Natasha said. “This AIM idiot has the cure. But it isn’t foolproof yet. We need you to take this to your lab and see what you can work on.”

Bruce nodded his head. The AIM scientist, who was the leader, handed over a vial which had a pink liquid bobbing around in it. Bruce took it.

“I’ll uh… work on this,” Bruce nodded his head. He then turned to Tony and whispered, “Thank you so much Tony.”

“Is okay,” Tony replied, yawning.

Bruce then passed Tony to Steve and went back to his lab. The others surveyed the damage done around them and sighed. Adult Tony was definitely _not_ going to appreciate this.

…

“So, that’s exactly what happened, Coulson,” Natasha ended off with a sigh.

Coulson pinched his forehead while nodding his head. Beside him, an agent, Bobbi Morse, was taking down notes.

“And… the AIM guys had the cure, so that’s why they wanted to kidnap Tony Stark?” Bobbi asked for confirmation.

“Yeah, to try the cure out on him,” Clint stepped in. He winked at Bobbi and earned an eye roll from her.

“Like the good old days?” Natasha smirked.

“We didn’t have a thing,” Clint shrugged. “Right, Bobbi? It was just a smile thing, right?”

Bobbi narrowed her eyes at him, getting ready to whack him using her words.

“Guys,” Coulson said firmly. “I think we have an even more important matter at hand. And that’s the safety of Tony, who is 4 years old as of now. S.H.I.E.L.D will lock the AIM scientists up and Damage Control will oversee the clean-up. We’ll leave Dr. Banner with the cure, with the help of the leader.”

The rest of them nodded their heads. Natasha and Clint left Coulson and Bobbi at the communal level. They went to their rooms to get their injuries checked.  

Just a level below, Steve was with little Tony in his room.

“You alright?” he asked Tony. “You got some injuries, but they’re pretty minor.”

Tony was shaking his legs, seated at the edge of the bed. “I’m okay, Cap. Sorry I made you angry.”

Steve, who was sitting beside Tony, was applying medication on one of his wounds. He turned to look at him. “Tony, I wasn’t angry… I know my tone was harsh but I wasn’t angry with you.”

“You know, dad always said if you saw me you will be as disappointed as he is.” Tears gathered in the little boy’s chocolate brown eyes. His lips wobbled, and he looked at his palms. “Maybe that’s true because dad never loved me. So will you, Cap…”

Steve placed the medication away and sat closer to Tony. He brushed back Tony’s hair, barely stopping the tears from forming in his own eyes. “Howard is wrong. He’s been wrong about you, Tony. And I’m not disappointed with you, I never was. If anything, I really love you. You gave me a home, a family. You gave me a reason to keep living in a world that moved on without me. Tony, I really do love you.” Tears fell out of his eyes. He quickly wiped them away.

Tony scrambled to get up. He threw himself onto Steve, hugging him. Steve let out a shaky sigh and hugged him back.

“I love you too, Cap,” little Tony said softly. Steve’s enhanced hearing had picked that up, fortunately.

Steve gave Tony’s cheek a kiss, a very firm kiss. Tony smiled at that. His little hands wiped Steve’s tears away. “You shouldn cry, Cap.” He smiled.

“I won’t,” Steve assured him.

“I’ll miss you, Cap.”

“Me too.”

“Thank you for being my reason to live,” Tony smiled.

It took some time for Steve to realize the true meaning of Tony’s words. And it was then he also realized how much of an impact Steve had had on Tony’s life.

Tony on the other hand was so glad he was able to thank his one inspiration, his idol, Captain America himself. At that age, his only wish was to see and talk to Steve. It got fulfilled, even though it was just for a short time. Little Tony was sure going to miss his time here in the future; in his future.

Tony leaned forward and planted a kiss on Steve’s cheek. He then giggled, making Steve laugh.

“Okay Tony, ready to go to the lab?” Steve asked, taking in a deep breath.

“Aye aye Captain!” Tony grinned.

Steve lifted Tony up and made his way to the stairs. There were still debris littered around, with some AIM scientists on the ground. S.H.I.E.L.D personnel were carefully taking each man dressed in that obnoxious yellow suit into custody, while the people from Damage Control were waiting for them to finish up their work so that they could start theirs.

Tony cheerfully waved at some of them. And they too, waved back at him. The Damage Control people were sworn to secrecy about this issue; they knew who the little boy was.

Once at the lab, Steve placed little Tony on Bruce’s table. Natasha, Clint and Thor were also there.

“Thor!” Tony grinned. “Myuh-nee was really cool!”

“She was honored to have you wield her,” Thor said.

Bruce joined them after a while. “I figured out what the formula is. That pink liquid isn’t a drink. It’s to be placed in some sort of a machine and it’ll then turn to gas. After that, little Tony will be transported back to his time period and we’ll get our Tony back.”

“You mean…” Steve thought out aloud. “Our Tony got transported back in time?”

“Yeah, it’s a possibility, unless he was in limbo. It's also like a mixture... Like, our Tony was brought back in time but little Tony appeared here and once he crossed the timing, he got a little essence of adult Tony. It's complicated, really, but that's the gist of it,” Bruce said.

"So that would explain why kid Tony felt the feeling of an arc reactor on his chest earlier..." Steve thought to himself.

“Anyway, this gas has the capability to tear through the fabric of space and time when placed in the machine. AIM developed something smart but didn’t know how to use it well.”

Little Tony was listening to all these. He already knew he wouldn’t be spending much time with them anymore. And that he has to go back to his mundane life where his dad scolds him all the time. But he smiled when he thought about going back to Jarvis, where he truly felt at home. At least he was fun and was a human version there; not some disembodied voice. As much as he tried to be positive, the fact that he was going to leave Captain America behind broke his little heart. He sighed.

“So, a machine,” Natasha asked. “Where would we find one?”

“AIM already has one,” Bruce replied. “They managed to make one mini version of it and that’s with me. It’s the gun that they were using yesterday. I examined it, studied it. I even interrogated the AIM guy. So within two hours, I managed to come up with a makeshift machine myself, with the help of the leader.”

“Can we trust him though?” Clint asked.

“Yes,” Bruce said. “I said if he messes it up purposely, I’ll unleash the Hulk at him. That thought itself terrified him.”

Clint grinned at that.

“So what are we waiting for?” Thor asked.

Everyone turned to look at little Tony, who cleverly turned away to avoid their eye contacts. He didn’t really want to look at them. He knew they wanted his adult self-back, but, he felt a pang of sadness that he wasn’t wanted here. Tony crossed his arms and kept looking at the Hydrogen Peroxide solution that was at the end of the table.

“Tony?” Natasha asked in cajoling tone. “Aren’t you going to look at us, one last time?”

Tony had a pout. “No. You obviously want older me back and don’t want me. So no.”

Clint snickered at that.

“Tony, it’s just you coming back here,” Steve pointed out. He walked and stood in front of Tony, knowing damn well he could get the little one’s eye contact.

Tony turned to face Steve. “It’s fine, I’ll go back and live that boring life.”

“And soon, you’ll get here,” Steve said. He leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss on Tony’s forehead.

“We see that all the time,” Clint rolled his eyes. And then, a brilliant idea hit him. “Guys! We need to take a quick polaroid!”

Bruce rolled his eyes, while Natasha and Clint ran to their rooms to get some stuff.

While waiting for the two super spies, Tony found himself telling Steve about his school, and about how he was the smartest kid there. Hence, he barely made any friends. He told him about eating ice cream with Jarvis on warm afternoons, about the trip to the beach he had with Jarvis and Ana. He also mentioned that his aunt Peggy visited him all the time, and she always told him stories about Captain America. He said at times when Howard got really abusive, aunt Peggy was there to defend him. Tony grinned at the end of sharing some things with Steve; which adult Tony obviously hadn’t shared.

“Maybe all these… was worth it,” Tony sighed. He looked up at the ceiling. “I mean… adult me gets to meet you. That’s enough reason to be happy!”

“Oh Tony,” Steve laughed. He made a mental note to ask adult Tony about Peggy. He then ruffled Tony’s hair.

“Okay camera is here!” Clint grinned.

Natasha brought the Iron Man teddy bear and gave it to Tony. “This is for you. Take it with you.”

All the Avengers gathered around Tony. He was hugging the teddy bear and posed for the photo. Clint took the first polaroid and kept it. He took another one, this time, with all of them grinning. He decided to give that to Tony.

“Here,” he stretched it to little Tony. “A little souvenir from the future.”

Tony kept it with himself. He looked at the photograph of them smiling and clutched the teddy bear closer to his heart. He felt at peace, knowing he was going to be fine in a few years. He was glad he knew the answer to the question that would be each child’s dilemma; _am I going to be okay in the future?_

“Alright, it’s time,” Bruce said. He was focusing on his machine.

“Take care Tony,” Natasha smiled at him. She gave his forehead a kiss and patted his head.

“Keep these two close to you, okay?” Clint asked. He gave little Tony a hug, squeezing the little boy.

“You will be a fine man in the future, Tony,” Thor smiled. “I wish you all the best. The God of Thunder will always be there for you.” Thor hugged Tony tightly. Tony touched Mjolnir one last time. He felt the same energy coursing through him.

“Tony,” Steve sighed. “Take good care. And don’t ever let Howard’s words affect you.”

“Okay Cap,” Tony nodded his head.

“Remember Tony, I love you so much,” Steve said softly. He pulled Tony to him, giving him a full hug. Tony hugged back and did his best to capture this moment in his mind eye. He felt the warmth radiating from Steve, the material of his cotton grey shirt, his breath ghosting down his neck, the way his hug felt and even his smell. Tony noted it all.

“I love you too, Cap!” he smiled.

With that, the others walked out of Bruce’s lab, knowing he preferred to work in private. Tony looked at his Captain one last time, and once he disappeared inside the elevator, Tony sighed. He was really going to miss his adult self's friends and Steve.

“Don’t be down,” Bruce offered. “I’m sure you’re going to be okay.”

Tony turned to face Bruce, who was busy keying in something in his computer. And then he remembered something. “Doktor Banner! I have a question!”

“And what will that be?” Bruce chuckled.

“I read some reports on the Hulk and about the experiment,” Tony slowly started. “How did that much of gamma energy not kill you?”

Bruce nearly pressed the wrong readings. He adjusted his glasses and turned to face Tony, recalling a familiar conversation he had had with adult Tony. “You had asked me the same question; I mean, adult you. I want to ask you, what do you think, Tony?”

Tony cleared his throat before replying. “I think big green saved your life.”

Bruce felt his heart warm at that. He also loved Tony’s answer because deep down, he knew that was what adult Tony would have said.

He walked to where the boy was and placed both his hands on the table. He stood near Tony. “You’re a smart kid, Tony. You’ll figure this out. Also, all the best reaching here in a few more years.”

“Thank you Doktor Banner,” Tony grinned. “Also, I think the Hulk is my favorite. Don’t tell Cap!”

Bruce laughed a hearty laugh, that even showed the crinkles by his eyes. He then carried little Tony to the machine. The machine looked like a giant capsule with doors. Bruce placed Tony inside. He gave him a reassuring smile, a wave, and then closed the doors.

Inside, Tony was hugging the teddy bear and the polaroid photo. He looked around, feeling nervous. He would have loved to bring Cap with him. He could prove to his dad that he was worthy of the Stark mantle after all. And then they all could live happily with one another.

But little Tony knew that was wrong. That’s not how it would work. He decided that Steve belonged here and that the people here need him more. He looked at the photo, particularly at Steve, who was grinning. He pressed it to his heart and waited to get transported back to his own time.

He saw the pink smoke emerge from the side and knew it was time. He closed his eyes and thought about Steve.

 _“I got you, Tony. I got you.”_ Steve’s voice kept echoing in his mind.

After a few seconds, his world went black.

...

When adult Tony woke up, he was more than surprised to find himself sprawled across Bruce’s lab. On a freaking gurney!!

He quickly got up, but there was a sharp pain near his abdomen. He held it, and groaned.

“Hey,” Bruce greeted him once he heard the noise. “Welcome back.”

“What the heck happened to me?” Tony asked. He was completely naked under the sheets.

“You were hit by an AIM invention,” Bruce replied. “You kid self made an appearance here too. And… he just left.”

“Well shit,” Tony rubbed his eyes. “How did you carry me up here? How long was I out?”

“The love of your life did and you were out for only fifteen minutes,” Bruce said. “What do you remember though, Tony?”

“I was in… some sort of a limbo,” Tony frowned. “But… I was also at my old house. Where I lived when I was younger, with Jarvis and all.”

Bruce nodded his head. “So… AIM created a device that can transport you to limbo and to the past, and bring your younger self from the same time period to the present time. Impressive.”

“It was anything but that,” Tony pointed out. He slowly got down, wrapping the sheets around him. He walked towards the elevator.

“Oh, Tony? Don’t be so surprised at the state of Steve’s and your level,” Bruce warned.

Tony didn’t understand what Bruce had meant. Until the elevator doors opened to Steve’s level. When he saw the debris, he nearly screamed. He walked out, looking up at the ceiling, which had a massive hole. A few Damage Control employees were still lingering around. When they saw Tony, they smiled at him.

Tony smiled back. He quickly entered Steve’s room.

“Mind telling me what in the fuck happened here?” Tony said.

Steve was reading a book. He looked up. When he saw his genius standing there wrapped around in a white sheet, he smiled.

“Welcome back,” Steve said. He gave Tony’s lips a kiss. But Tony barely kissed him back.

“No wait don’t distract me using your seductiveness,” Tony rolled his eyes. Steve snorted. “Steve, what happened to the communal level?!”

“Well,” Steve hesitated. “You were de-aged, and a few AIM scientists wanted to kidnap you. But you used Mjolnir to beat the crap out of them and half destroyed the Tower.”

Tony couldn’t believe what he had just heard because in which world, was Tony worthy enough to lift Thor’s hammer?

“Yeah right,” Tony huffed. “Cut the bullshit and tell me the truth.”

“Tony, why would I lie to you?” Steve asked in an exasperated manner. “You did lift Thor’s hammer and used it!”

Tony’s eyebrows shot up this time, reaching a new height.

“I’ll deal with this once I’ve put some clothes on,” Tony sighed. He quickly took some clothes and ran to the washroom.

Within fifteen minutes, Tony had gathered at their penthouse with the team. All of them were sitting down on the couch, facing one another.

“Look,” Tony said. “I’m really sorry for the damage. I’ll pay for the costs, which is gonna be so much. I feel it. And then, we need to renovate the communal level and-”

“Ugh I’m already missing kid Tony,” Clint interrupted. “At least he didn’t do the cost talks with us.”

Tony clamped his mouth shut and glared at Clint. And then he asked, “Bruce? Why didn’t you transport him with my kid-self then?”

Bruce shrugged. “He belongs here.”

“Yeah!” Clint sat back and grinned. “I’m a 21st Century’s asset!”

“Asshat,” Tony corrected Clint.

“Tony,” Steve called him, using the disapproving tone. He shook his head.

“Right,” Tony rubbed his face. “I’m really sorry if my kid-self did anything stupid or behaved in a weird manner.”

Natasha pursed her lips. “He was just fine. He was a fine darling, Tony.”

Compliments weren’t usual from Natasha. So, Tony thanked her and smiled softly at her.

“He did tell me about what your dad said and did, and about Peggy,” Steve said.

Tony internally cringed. So now, Steve knew about what kind of a big Cap fan he was. Even Coulson would be surprised.

“You could have told us about your dad’s words. And to me about Peggy!” Steve pointed out.

“Well in my defense,” Tony spoke. “We were mostly trying to save the world from aliens, HYDRA idiots, AIM fools. So there was no time for deep talk.”

“But you had time to fall in love?” Bruce asked, stumping everyone.

“Communication is key, Tony,” Natasha leaned forward and said. “You can tell us, only if you choose to. We won’t judge you!”

“That’s not what friends do, Tony,” Clint added on.

“You are our friend. You can tell us anything,” Thor smiled.

Tony sighed, knowing he had already lost. “Fine. My dad was a dick to me. But it’s fine because that phase of my life is done. Agent Carter, I knew her as aunt Peggy. She always dropped by when I was younger and brought me out with Jarvis. She was like… my saving grace.”

Steve smiled as he pictured Peggy shielding Tony away from Howard. He wished he was there with her, shielding little Tony together.

“But I didn’t know I could lift Mjolnir,” Tony raised both his hands up, as if he was surrendering.

“You should try that again. To see if you’re worthy now,” Clint suggested.

Tony blinked at him. “Wait, you’re actually serious.”

“Try it, friend Tony!” Thor grinned. He sat back on the couch.

Tony stood up. He went to where Mjolnir was placed, which was on their coffee table, and placed his hand closer to the handle. He saw little blue sparks emerge on the hammer. It went down, to where Tony’s hand was. Thor raised both his eyebrows, and waited for Tony’s move.

But Tony didn’t want to make the move. He already knew the sparks moving towards him meant that he could lift the hammer. But deep down, he felt as if it was wrong. This was Thor’s hammer, his weapon. Tony had his own weapon. There was no reason for him to touch the hammer, unless he really had to. The whole idea behind Mjolnir felt pure and holy, and Tony didn’t want to mess it all up.

He pulled his hand back, shaking his head.

“No,” Tony said firmly. “Thor, it’s yours. I… I can’t do it. I’ve made weapons in the past that killed others… I can’t. Maybe if I need to I will but now, I’ll let Mjolnir be with you.”

He sat back down beside Steve.

“Well, people change and you’ve changed for the better, Tony,” Thor assured his friend. “Don’t be too hard on yourself.”

“We all make mistakes. It’s correcting them that makes us even more human,” Natasha smiled.

“True,” Tony nodded his head.

“Anyway, just curious but… were you transported back in time?” Clint asked.

Tony then went on to explain where he was. It was like a limbo. He spent some time wandering around limbo aimlessly, also naked. There was also a tree there, and that was where he sat down most of the time. He then found a source of light and walked towards it. It had led him to his old house’s garden. He walked into his old house, where cops were gathered.

Apparently 4-year-old Tony Stark was kidnapped and everyone in the house were worried. He tried to tell them that he was actually there, but realized they couldn’t see him. Only he could see them. So he wandered around his house, walking behind Jarvis who was crying. Ana did her best to console him but it wasn’t working.

 _“He’s just a little kid, Ana,”_ Jarvis cried. _“I hope whoever got him wouldn’t hurt him at all!”_

He then went to look at his mother, who was sitting by the window side in her room, crying too. Howard had given her shoulder a squeeze. _“We’ll find him.”_ He assured her. Howard then walked out of the room. Tony walked in further, and knelt down in front of his mom. He placed his head on her lap and wished she could see him.

He really missed her.

Tony got up when he heard a noise coming from upstairs. He found himself in Howard’s office minutes later. And his dad was holding a picture of Captain America and another picture of little Tony. Just then, Obadiah Stane walked in. And so did Peggy Carter. Both of them were assuring him that the police would find Tony.

 _“They’ll find him, Howard.”_ Peggy sighed. _“I’m also working on it.”_

Adult Tony started to cry, realizing how much he had missed some people in his life. At night, he lied down right beside Jarvis, silently crying and wishing he could see and talk to him.

 _“Oh master Stark,”_ Jarvis sighed. _“I hope wherever you are… You’ll be fine.”_

Tony couldn’t take it. He ran back to his room to cry more. He saw a Captain America doll and took it. He hugged the doll and had cried himself to sleep. When he woke up, he was stark naked and was transported back to limbo, right beside the tree. Within a few seconds, he felt himself go dizzy.

“And then I woke up in Bruce’s lab,” Tony sniffled. He wiped away his tears.

Clint wiped away his tears too. He gave Tony’s shoulder a pat. The penthouse was silent; everyone was trying to understand what Tony had gone through. Steve’s eyes were red. He was holding his boyfriend’s hand, squeezing it tightly, hoping someday Tony wouldn’t have to feel this much of pain.

“I’ll be in my lab,” Bruce said quietly. He wiped his tears away. Before he left, he gave Tony a hug and said, “You can always drop by at my lab for a chat, science buddy.”

Tony nodded his head. Thor too gave Tony a hug. He took Mjolnir and got ready to leave. “You’re a strong man, Tony.” He said, before he walked away. He wanted to go down to help the Damage Control people finish up their work quickly.

“I’ll show you the polaroid with took with you!” Clint grinned, hoping that could cheer him up.

“And the teddy bear collection,” Natasha added. She whispered to Tony before getting up, caressing his cheek, “Look, you don’t have to wallow in your own sadness alone. We’re all here for you. You can always talk to us, Tony. We really love you.”

And then, everyone walked away, leaving Steve with Tony.

Steve pulled Tony closer to him and hugged him.

“Look Tony,” Steve said softly. “I’m always here for you.”

He gave Tony’s lips a kiss. Tony kissed back, ignoring the tears that were falling from his eyes. He only broke the kiss to let out a sob. Steve wiped away Tony’s tears, and pressed his forehead against his.

“I know Steve,” Tony whispered. “You’ve always been there.”

Tony hugged Steve, and placed his head on his chest. Steve curled his arms around Tony. They sat there in silence, living in the moment and appreciating each other’s presence. They both then closed their eyes, feeling at absolute peace.

When Natasha and Clint walked in a few minutes later, they would find both Steve and Tony sleeping soundly with each other. Their faces would look peaceful and the rising sun’s golden glow would dance on both their faces gracefully.

 

 

\---EPILOGUE---

A week later, Tony decided to clean his room. He also took that opportunity to move some of his stuff to Steve’s room permanently, so that he wouldn’t have to run up and down when looking for his stuff.

There were many boxes in his room. The clothes that were inside his wardrobe were all neatly laid out on his bed, courtesy of Steve.

Tony was clearing his cupboard. He found a box that simply said, ‘touch it and you’ll be maimed’.

“Jarvis, remind me to label things better,” Tony sighed.

“I will sir,” Jarvis replied. “But you will label the boxes according to your mood.”

“And sometimes you have really foul moods,” his girl Friday added on. “There’s even a box at your lab that says, _‘touch it and your fingers will kiss your body goodbye’._ ”

“Shorter labels next time then,” Tony chuckled to himself. He opened the box he had taken and found some items from his past. There was even a small photograph that looked pretty much washed-out. He managed to see Steve’s face, that looked like he was grinning. He smiled, and placed the photo in the box. He took out two dolls that were caked in dust. One was a Captain America doll. But Tony couldn’t really recognize the other one, that looked like a teddy bear.

“Can you lift them or do you need help?” Clint’s snarky voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

“I can,” Tony scoffed.

He placed back all the stuff inside and box and lifted it, deciding to keep them. Clint helped lift another box that was all sealed up. They both walked to Steve’s room together.

“You do keep a lot of stuff from the past for someone who doesn’t call himself nostalgic,” Clint pointed out.

“Some of them are worth the keep,” Tony confessed after a few seconds of silence.

“Like Cap stuff?” Clint chuckled.

“Yes,” Tony rolled his eyes. “Even though it’s cringe worthy. But… I don’t remember having a teddy bear… or maybe I did. Yeah yeah, I had a weird teddy bear when I was young. Jarvis didn’t know where it had come from, you know. He was freaking out!!”

Clint laughed. “Garage sale, probably.” He suggested.

“I don’t know man,” Tony said.

They both entered the elevator.

“Kid me had a lot of weird stuff,” Tony said, while thinking about the washed-out photograph.

It would take exactly four minutes for the genius to figure out that the washed-out photograph was actually the polaroid photo Clint had given the younger version of him, and that the weird teddy bear was actually the Iron Man teddy bear Natasha had given to kid Tony.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everything is linked, in the end! 
> 
> If you have any feedback, please feel free to drop it at the comments below! :)  
> Hope you enjoyed this story!

**Author's Note:**

> Are you excited to read about how Tony fought with Mjolnir?  
> I'll update the next chapter next week so do stay tuned!!
> 
> If you have any feedback, you can leave a comment below. :)


End file.
